Fab chemical process monitoring and fault detection
In process monitoring applications, the desired chemistry must be maintained over time. In fault detection applications, the system must verify that the correct chemical is being dispensed to the process. With accurate monitoring, fabs know the composition of each given chemical stream. Without monitoring, wafers become the de facto chemical monitors. By that time, wafers have already been lost and large-scale equipment contamination may have occurred.
Vaisala K‑PATENTS® semicon refractometer offers real-time liquid monitoring and prevents wrong chemical concentrations from being dispensed onto wafers, indicates timing for spiking, e.g. for water in EKC at the post-etch residual removal and indicates bath life and KOH concentration in etching of silicon.
Applications in fab chemical process monitoring and fault detection
Vaisala offers in-line, real-time, reliable, precise and cost-effective metrology for wet chemistry concentration measurements which can replace expensive and complex analyzers used in fab chemical process monitoring and fault detection as well as CMP slurry composition and concentration control.
Bulk chemical delivery
Quality detection of incoming chemicals, such as: HF, IPA, DHF, H2O2, HNO3, HCI, KOH, NaOH, NH4OH.
Semiconductor wet chemicals
Real-time concentration monitoring of wet chemicals during silicon wafer fabrication.
Peroxide blending and dispense at CMP
Critical process systems: Hydrogen peroxide H2O2 or other oxidizing agent's concentration monitoring during Chemical Mechanical Planarization (CMP) process.
Chemical interface detection in wafer cleaning
Instant switch of wafer cleaning chemicals hydrofluoric acid (HF), deionized water (DIW), SC-1 (H2O2, NH3).
Solar (photovoltaic) industry: Removal of residual sawing material from solar wafers
Lactic acid CH3CHOHCOOH or acetic acid CH3COOH bath concentration monitoring.
White Papers
In-line refractive index in assay characterization of incoming fresh and effluent spent CMP slurry
In-line refractive index (RI) measurements are the technique of choice for qualifying the hydrogen peroxide content in CMP slurries. However, peroxide content is not the only slurry metric of interest. Typically, slurries are delivered from the...
In-line refractive index replaces auto-titration in qualifying H₂O₂ concentration in CMP of tungsten
Refractive index measurements have established themselves as the technique of choice for qualifying peroxide content in slurries for CMP of tungsten. Many emerging process flows use CMP as a critical tool for building circuit structures, dramatically...
In-line refractive index monitoring for CMP slurry fault detection
Inline refractive index measurements have established themselves as the technique of choice for detecting faults in the CMP slurry blending and dispense systems of leading fabs. Refractive index, a continuous, non-sampling measurement, helps fabs identify...
In-situ chemical monitoring in semiconductor fabrication chemical supplies
In-coming chemical quality has been left to the chemical suppliers. Semiconductor fabricators have very limited or no capability to detect problems with process chemistries from their suppliers. It was found that product is exposed to any incoming chemical...
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